Caldwell, N.J. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Women's Lacrosse team struck for eight first-half goals en route to a 12-10 victory over Caldwell University on Thursday evening at the Kiwanis Oval in New Jersey.
STAC moves to 2-1 on the season, while Caldwell falls to 0-2.
Jada Garcia and Hailey Galison led the Spartans' offense with five goals apiece, with Galison also recording an assist. Meanwhile, teammate Katelyn Cerrato scored twice and added two helpers on the evening. Goalie Lilah Magenheimer (W, 2-0) got the start in the cage for STAC and stopped 15 of 25 shots faced to run her record to 2-0 on the year.
On the other side of the field, Caldwell was led by Tiana Cipot, who tallied four goals and two assists. Gloria Carpenter (3 goals, 1 assist), Meghan Korzevinski (2 goals) and Jessica George (1 goal) added to the totals on the scoresheet for the Cougars. Goalie Sarahkate Schneider (L, 0-2) went the distance for Caldwell and turned aside 15 of 27 shots fired her way.
STAC opened the scoring with three straight goals in the first two minutes of the match, as Jada Garcia (2) and Katelyn Cerrato found the back of the net before Caldwell answered on a goal by Meghan Korzevinski to make it 3-1 for the visitors. Jada Garcia scored her third goal of the match followed by Hailey Galison's first of the night to increase the Spartans lead to 5-1. Tiana Cipot closed the first quarter scoring for the Cougars to cut their deficit to 5-2 through 15 minutes of action.
Hailey Galison kicked off the scoring in the second stanza, with Gloria Carpenter striking back for Caldwell to make it 6-3 STAC advantage. However, the maroon and gold would continue their scoring barrage with Galison tallying her hat trick goal and Jada Garcia adding her fourth of the match to increase the lead to 8-3. Carpenter would get one back for the Cougars, her second of the night, to narrow the score to 8-4 at the half.
Caldwell would return to the field and outscore STAC four goals to three in the quarter, as Meghan Korzevinski, Tiana Cipot (2) and Jessica George would get their shots past goalie Lilah Maganheimer, while Katelyn Cerrato scored her second, Hailey Galison her fourth and Jada Garcia her fifth would solve goalie Sarahkate Schneider to run the Spartans lead to 11-8 with just 15 minutes left to play.
In the fourth quarter, Hailey Galison struck for an early goal, her fifth of the evening, to make it 12-8 STAC, but Caldwell would not go quietly, scoring twice on goals by Tiana Cipot and Gloria Carpenter to close within 12-10. However, time and Lilah Magenheimer's fantastic saves in the final minutes stymied the Cougars and sent St. Thomas Aquinas College to its second straight victory.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
- STAC outshot Caldwell 33-32 (27-25 on goal) for the match.
- Hailey Galison tallied a game-high 10 shots, with 8 going on net for the St. Thomas Aquinas graduate student.
- Galison also gathered eight of the Spartans 19 ground balls and also caused six turnovers.
- STAC won 15 of 26 draw controls on the afternoon, with Katelyn Cerrato winning eight draws.
UP NEXT:
STAC heads out on its two-match, spring break tour, first visiting Virginia State University on Tuesday, March 11. The opening draw between the Spartans and the Trojans is set to get underway at 2:00 p.m. in Ettrick, Va.